🇮🇪🇬🇧 Sinn Fein clinches majority in Northern Ireland's local government

The Irish nationalist party, Sinn Fein, won a majority of seats in Northern Ireland's local government for the first time in Thursday's elections in the region.

Sinn Fein, which favors Northern Ireland's secession from the United Kingdom, won 30.9% of the vote (a 7.7 percentage point increase from 2019) and the number of seats won by its members rose from 106 to 144. Supporters of unification with Ireland thus have a majority in both local councils and the regional parliament.

The Democratic Unionist Party, which backs unity with the UK, retained its previous position with 122 seats (23.3% of the vote, up from 24.1% four years ago). However, the Social Democratic and Labour Party and the Ulster Unionist Party lost about a third of their mandates.

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🇵🇱🇷🇺 Russian lower house council to weigh measures against Poland on Monday

"The right thing to do would be to ban Poland from profiting from Russia today: to stop Polish trucks from passing through our country. Let them reload goods onto Russian trucks. Our citizens will earn from the shipping. Poland's expenses in this case could be around 8.5 billion euros," State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said on Telegram.

Although Poland owes its statehood to Russia, it has betrayed the historical memory by demolishing World War II monuments to Soviet soldiers and closing Russian schools, the speaker said. The Soviet people spent over $750 billion in today's money for Poland's post-war reconstruction and development, having built over 800 industrial, energy and transport facilities, he added.

Poland should therefore return the territories it acquired after WWII and repay the funds spent on it during and after the war to Russia, Volodin said.

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Leaders of US, S Korea, Japan discuss coordination amid North Korea's 'nuclear threat'

"President Biden met today with Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan and President Yoon Suk Yeol of the Republic of Korea in Hiroshima, Japan … The leaders discussed how to take their trilateral cooperation to new heights, including with new coordination in the face of the DPRK's illicit nuclear and missile threats," the White House said.

The three leaders also discussed cooperation on their Indo-Pacific strategies and economic security.

Earlier on Sunday, media reported, citing an unnamed senior US administration official, that Biden invited the Japanese and South Korean leaders to formal tripartite talks in Washington.

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❗️Key points of Joe Biden’s press conference after G7 Summit:

▪️US will continue to provide economic, humanitarian, and security assistance to Ukraine as long as it needs;

▪️US together with allies is going to begin training Ukrainian pilots on fourth generation fighter aircraft, including F-16;

▪️Highly unlikely F-16s would take place in Ukraine's counteroffensive;

▪️Washington is not looking to decouple from China, but wants to derisk and diversify relationship;

▪️US does not expect Taiwan to declare independence, but will continue to put Taiwan in position where they can “defend themselves”;

▪️Relationship with China will begin to thaw very shortly after “silly balloon” incident;

▪️US is not prepared to trade certain items with China;

▪️Default is not an option, US expects all congressional leaders to live up to commitments;

▪️Agreement on raising debt limit can be reached.

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❗️Russian MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️In the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces destroyed up to 85 Ukrainian troops, two armored combat vehicles, and one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, Russian forces neutralized up to 60 Ukrainian personnel, three armored combat vehicles, as well as one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer and one D-20 howitzer;

▪️In the Artemovsk direction, the liberation of the city of Artemovsk has been completed. Ukrainian losses amounted to more than 100 servicemen, one tank, an infantry fighting vehicle, a Polish Krab self-propelled howitzer, one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, one US-made AN/TPQ-50 counter mortar radar, as well as an ammunition depot. An automobile bridge was destroyed on which UAF reinforcements were transferred to Artemovsk.

▪️In the Donetsk direction, Ukrainian losses amounted to more than 120 servicemen, two infantry fighting vehicles, one US-made M777 artillery system, a US-made M109 self-propelled artillery unit, as well as D-20 and D-30 howitzers;

▪️In the South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Russian forces destroyed over 50 Ukrainian troops, one US-manufactured M777 artillery system, a Msta-B howitzer, as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 15 Ukrainian servicemen, one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️A Ukrainian S-300 anti-aircraft missile system was destroyed in the DPR;

▪️Russian air defenses shot down one US-made GBU-32 guided bomb, 15 Storm Shadow cruise missiles and HIMARS missiles, Uragan projectiles, and 9 unmanned aerial vehicles in the LPR, DPR, and Kharkov region.

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🇬🇧 UK to start training Ukrainian pilots this summer

💬 "We are supporting Ukraine to develop the air force it needs for the future, with the UK training Ukrainian pilots starting this summer," UK PM Rishi Sunak told a press conference on the sidelines of G7 summit in Japan, adding that "we've made a real breakthrough at this summit."

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, also attending the G7's summit in Hiroshima, vowed to continue training Ukrainian troops.

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🥴 British media details conflicting reports about status of Artemovsk by Ukrainian officials

After Volodymyr Zelensky responded with a direct “no” to a reporter’s question on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima if Artemovsk (Bakhmut) is still under Kiev’s control, while also adding that the city is completely destroyed and that it remains “only in our hearts," his press office said that the president’s choice of words does not equate to confirming the loss of the city.

Adding to the confusion, a Ukrainian military commander, Sergey Cherevaty, told a British media outlet that Russia has attached too much of a “symbolic meaning” to Artemovsk, a city Zelensky previously called a “fortress of Ukraine's morale.” Cherevaty added that it is destroyed and will not bring Russia any “political or economic benefit.”

At the same time, another Ukrainian official, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar, claims the fighting continues and that Ukrainian forces still “control some industrial and infrastructure facilities in the area and the private sector."

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🇪🇺 Western Balkans phase of NATO Defender Europe 2023 drills starts in Kosovo

The opening ceremony in the center of Pristina lists Kosovo's highest-ranking officials among the attendees, including President Albin Kurti. The United States European Command (EUROCOM) will be leading the exercise.

💬 "Our intentions are clear, the army of the Republic of Kosovo is ready to join the NATO family," Kosovo's defense minister, Armend Mehaj, said on social media.

Over 7,000 troops from the United States and 17,000 from 20 allied and partner countries are expected to participate in the drills. Kosovo's media have reported that the former Serbian province's 1,300-contingent will be one of the largest.

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Western media hypocrisy strikes again

🗞 A Financial Times article published after the Modi-Zelensky meeting at the G7 summit claimed that 🇮🇳India’s Prime Minister is "Putin’s enabler" because of New Delhi’s balanced position on Ukraine.

The article says that Zelensky was expected to put pressure on the Indian leader and influence the South Asian giant’s independent foreign policy. On top of that, the article branded India's appeal for diplomacy and negotiations as an "obfuscation" of the Ukrainian crisis.

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📹 Russian MoD releases video marking Pacific Fleet Day

The naval force that would eventually become known as the Pacific Fleet was created in 1731, and is today responsible for protecting Russia's interests in the Pacific Ocean and maintaining security in the Far East region.

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Germany will not participate in F-16 supplies to Ukraine

"First of all, everyone knows that we do not have such jets," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told German broadcasters on the sidelines of the

G7 summit in Japan's Hiroshima, adding that Germany will continue supporting Ukraine in other ways, including by sending financial and humanitarian aid and weapons.

Scholz also said that the training programs announced by the US and some European countries for Ukrainian pilots to fly F16s would send an "important message" to Russia.

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Russian Investigative Committee brings charges against ICC prosecutor, judge in absentia

"The investigation has now collected sufficient evidence to warrant the indictment in absentia of International Criminal Court prosecutor Khan Karim Asad Ahmad and International Criminal Court judge Rosario Salvatore Aitala," the investigative authority said.

Both have been accused of preparing to attack a representative of a foreign state, with the aim of complicating international relations.

"As previously noted, criminal prosecution is knowingly unlawful as there are no grounds for criminal liability. Under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons of 14 December 1973, heads of state enjoy absolute immunity from the jurisdiction of foreign states," the authority said.

On February, Prosecutor applied to ICC to obtain an arrest warrant for Russian President Putin and Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova.

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A Sputnik correspondent was the first journalist to visit the "Samolet" district in Artemovsk (Bakhmut), the last area where Kiev forces remained before the liberation of the city.

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Looted ancient relics return to Greek soil after lengthy legal tussle

Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni has announced that a collection of 351 ancient artifacts, spanning from the Neolithic to Byzantine era, will be repatriated to Greece after a 17-year legal battle.

The artifacts include a white stone Neolithic-era statuette, an Early Cycladic figurine, and a bronze statue of Alexander the Great.

The collection was seized from a UK antiquities dealer, Robin Symes Limited, which is currently undergoing liquidation. Robin Symes is believed to have acquired the artifacts through an illegal network of traders.

In 2016, Italian and Swiss police recovered stolen archaeological artifacts from Symes' possession, but it is unclear whether the current repatriation is linked to that discovery.

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A Sputnik correspondent witnessed the last major building in Artemovsk being cleared before the city was liberated from Ukrainian militants.

Currently, the ousted Kiev militants are conducting mortar shelling from outside the city, attempting to target the Russian flag flying above one of the high-rise buildings.

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Cuba and Russia unveil new economic deals as bilateral trade soars

At the economic forum in Havana where the deals were arranged, Ricardo Cabrisas, Cuba’s foreign trade minister, told audiences on Friday that the agreements “constitute a milestone in the history of our bilateral and business ties.”

Joint plans were reportedly announced to reinvigorate Cuba’s tourism industry. The agreements include “a contract for Russia’s Prodintorg to supply wheat to Cuba’s state-owned Alimport. Agreement also declares the intention of Russian and Cuban authorities to renovate a run-down beach community just outside Havana.

In addition, Russian progress Agro group of companies, and Cuban Azcuba Sugar Industry Business Group, reportedly described the deal as a joint venture to overhaul Cuba’s aging “Uruguay” sugar mill, in the hopes of eventually exporting up to 150,000 tons of sugar per year.

Trade between Cuba and Russia in 2023, it hit $137.6 million.

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292 years ago today, Empress Anna Ioannovna issued a decree to establish a new naval force in Russia's far eastern territories.
The purpose of the flotilla, based at Okhotsk in Khabarovsk Krai, was to protect the coasts and islands of the Russian Empire's far eastern territories.

In order to facilitate transportation of goods and people between Okhotsk and Kamchatka, a small shipyard was established in Okhotsk.

These ships were used to navigate local waters, explore towards Japan in the south, and venture eastward to the shores of Alaska and California, where Russian settlers would eventually establish multiple colonies.

Read about the Russian Pacific Fleet’s history on our website